A study by scientists from the University of Nottingham has led calls for doctors to prescribe the lowest dose of statins when treating patients with high cholesterol, to lower risk of adverse events.
Published in the British Medical Journal, the primary care study showed that the chance of adverse events was increased in different degrees depending on the type, dose and duration of the statins administered.
The team used data taken from 369 general practices, containing the medical records of 2 million patients newly prescribed statins. This included 225,922 patients taking either simvastatin, atorvastatin, fluvastatin, pravastatin or rosuvastatin to reduce cholesterol.
Over 8 years, any adverse reaction were recorded. For every 10,000 women at high-risk who were treated with statins, there would be 74 cases of liver damage, 23 cases of kidney failure and 307 cases of cataracts. However, this increased risk was offset by the fact that in the group, there would be 271 fewer cases of heart disease and 8 fewer cases of cancer of the oesophagus.
Doctors have always been aware that statins, like any medication, come with the risk of side effects. However it is generally thought that the risk of side effects is offset by the reduction in cases of heart disease, stroke and other illnesses.
A spokeswoman from the British Heart Foundation, June Davison, said that they were already aware that a small proportion of statin users experience side effects, but that for those at high risk of heart disease, this chance was outweighed by the potential benefits.